The legal dispute between the Pacific Games Council and the government of Tonga could be settled out of court, it has been revealed.
Games Council chief executive Andrew Minogue reportedly said “the PGC had encouraged their barrister to seek opportunities to settle the case with the Tongan Government”, according to a report appeared on insidethegames website.
It quoted Minogue as saying “the view that an out of court settlement would be in everyone’s interest.”
The PGC and Tonga’s Olympic Committee (TASANOC) lodged a claim for millions of dollars of damages against the government for its late withdrawal from hosting the 2019 event.
The kingdom had applied to strike out or stay the plaintiffs’ claims.
As Kaniva news reported in November last year, the Supreme Court has upheld an application by the government to stay the legal action by the PGC and TASANOC.
The plaintiffs were seeking damages for breach of a written agreement that the Government of Tonga had agreed to support, facilitate and fund the hosting of the Pacific Games in Tonga in 2019.
The next step in the case is expected in September, with the PGC set to return submissions to the court after it noted defects in their initial claim.
The defects relate to the registration of TASANOC and the PGC.
“Effectively the judge recognised TASANOC exists but in the host city contract it is the Tonga Pacific Games Association and whether they exist,” Pacific Games Council chief executive Andrew Minogue told insidethegames.
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